The Ladykillers
Directed by Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
- comedy
- crime
- thriller
The story
An eccentric, if not charming Southern professor and his crew pose as a band in order to rob a casino, all under the nose of his unsuspecting landlord – a sharp old woman.
What it’s like
Flat, saturated Southern daylight and a palette of faded pastels, mint greens, dusty pinks and sickly yellows, give the streets and rooms of this Coen comedy the look of a postcard left too long in a sunny window. The camera is mostly calm and symmetrical, with wide static frames that let the awkward staging breathe, and the sound is a mix of boisterous gospel choir, twangy country-tinged score and the squeak of cheap furniture and bad jokes landing flat. It plays as wry, amused and gleefully mean-spirited in a deadpan way, a comedy about grifters who are mostly outclassed by a stubborn churchgoing widow. Pacing is brisk and jokey, with long setups paying off in small cruel punchlines, and the emotional register stays cool and ironic rather than warm. Violence is cartoonish and brief, with a few sudden bursts of gunfire and a body or two handled as slapstick, and there is no sexual content and nothing truly frightening. It suits a lazy afternoon, a comfort rewatch, or a night in with friends who like their crime capers slightly absurd, and it is for viewers who enjoy the Coens' cynical humour and don't need anyone to be likeable.
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